Zidoo X7 TV Box Review – Part 1: Unboxing & Teardown

Zidoo X7 is another Rockchip RK3328 based TV box that has the advantage of coming with 2GB RAM, 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.1, as well as Zidoo firmware support, compared to its cheaper competitors such as A95X R2 TV box. The company sent me a review sample to check out it. As a side note, it was quite a challenge to get the box, as my country of residence enacted a new law requiring a “broadcasting license” to import TV boxes and HDMI dongles, even if you get just one unit, so the first attempt failed to got through customs, but eventually I managed to get the box through a local reseller. Back to the review… As usual I’ll write a first part showcasing the hardware design today, before testing the firmware, and publishing my results next month. Zidoo X7 Unboxing The package shows some of the key features of […]

Zidoo H6 Pro 4K HDR TV Box with Allwinner H6 SoC Launched for $99

When I first wrote about Zidoo H6 Pro TV box powered by Amlogic H6 “6K” media processor last week, I expected the launch to take place in several weeks or months, as no other company listed their Allwinner H6 TV box(es) on Alibaba. So today, I was surprised to find out GearBest and GeekBuying are both taking pre-orders for $99, with shipping expected around August 11 – 15 according to the page on GearBest, and in around 3 days according to GeekBuying. The specifications have not changed since last week…: SoC – AllWinner H6 quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 processor up to 1.8GHz with Mali-T720MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR4 Storage – 16GB eMMC flash, micro SD card reader up to 32 GB Video Output – 1x HDMI 2.0a up to 4K @ 60hz with HDR support, AV port (composite) Video Playback Support H.265/HEVC Main/Main10 profile @ level 5.2 high-tier up to […]

iPazzPort SY-20-19RS TV Box Doubles as an Air Mouse Holder and Charger

iPazzPort SY-20-19RS is yet another Amlogic S905X powered Android TV box. But it sells with an air mouse with qwerty keyboard and touchpad by default, and includes a slot right in the middle to hold and charge the air mouse / remote control. iPassport SY-20-19RS TV box specifications: SoC –  Amlogic S905X quad core ARM Cortex-A53 processor @ up to 1.5 GHz with  penta-core Mali-450MP GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB eMMC flash + micro SD card slot up to 32GB Video Output – HDMI 2.0, AV Video Codecs – 1080p/4k2k H.264, H.265, VP9; HD AVC/VC-1, HD MPEG1/2/4, RM/RMVB, Xvid/DivX 3/4/5/6, RealVideo 8/9/10 Audio – HDMI, AV, coaxial S/PDIF Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet (N.B.: Sellers mention GbE, but S905X does not support it), dual band 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports Power Supply –  DC 5V/3A Dimensions – 124 mm ∅ x 80.7 […]

HiMedia Q30 TV Box Review – Part 2: Android 7.0 Nougat Firmware

HiMedia Q30 is an Android Nougat TV box powered by Hisilicon Hi3798MV200 processor, a cost-down version of Hi3798C V200 processor with the same CPU, a lower-end Mali-450MP GPU, about the same media capabilities, and less I/Os. I’ve taken pictures of the device and board if the first part of the review entitled “HiMedia Q30 (Hisilicon Hi3798MV200) Android TV Box Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown“, so today, I’ll report about my experience with the device while running Android 7.0. First Boot, Setup, and First Impressions I’ve connected a USB 3.0 hard drive to the single USB 3.0 port, and filled the two other USB 2.0 ports with a USB keyboard, and a USB hub with two RF dongles for an air mouse and a gamepad. I added Ethernet, HDMI, and power cable to start the device. A typical boot takes around 25 seconds to the Android launcher below. That’s […]

Rockchip RK3328 based MXR PRO TV Box Boasts 4GB RAM, 32GB Flash

Most users of TV boxes will do just fine with 2 GB RAM, especially with lower end ARM Cortex A53 systems, but if you have somewhat low processing needs, but high memory requirements, MXR Pro TV box powered by Rockchip RK3328 quad core Cortex A53 processor, and running Android 7.1 comes with 4GB RAM, and 32GB storage. MXR PRO 4K TV box specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3328 quad core Cortex A53 processor @ 1.5 GHz with Mali-450MP2 GPU System Memory – 4GB DDR3 Storage – 32 GB eMMC flash + SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 2.0a up to 4K @ 60 Hz with HDR10 and HLG support, 3.5mm AV port (composite) Video Codec – 4K VP9, H.265 and H.264. 1080p VC-1, MPEG-1/2/4, VP6/8 Audio – Via HDMI, AV port (stereo audio), and 3.5mm coaxial S/PDIF jack Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, single band 802.11 b/g/n WiFi USB – 3x […]

Bqeel MVR9 TV Box Review – Part 1: Specifications, Unboxing and Teardown

All Rockchip RK3328 based 4K TV boxes I’ve seen so far come with Fast Ethernet, not Gigabit Ethernet, with the exclusion of Rock64, which is not a TV box, but a development board. But Nagrace sent me Bqeel MVR9 box that comes with Gigabit Ethernet, in order to write a review. I’ll start by having a look at the hardware first, before experimenting with the firmware in several weeks. Bqeel MVR9 Specifications SoC – Rockchip RK3328 quad core Cortex A53 processor with ARM Mali-450MP2 GPU System Memory – 2 GB DDR4 @ 1066 MHz Storage – 16 GB eMMC flash + micro SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 2.0a up to 4K @ 60 Hz with HDR10 and HLG support, 3.5mm AV port (composite video) Video Codec – 4K VP9, H.265 and H.264, 1080p VC-1, MPEG-1/2/4, VP6/8 Audio Output – Via HDMI, and AV (stereo audio) ports; optical S/PDIF […]

H96 Pro Octa Core TV Dongle Runs Android 7.1.1 on Amlogic S912 Processor

That one will be confusing as H96 Pro is already a TV box, but somebody must have thought that model number was so good, it had to be re-used in another products. So I present to your H96 Pro TV dongle powered by the same Amlogic S912 processor running Android 7.1.1 Nougat. It’s not the first octa-core HDMI TV stick, as we’ve seen MeegoPad A02 (Allwinner A83T) and NEXBOX 809VI (Rockchip RK3368) in the past, but AFAICR I have not come across Amlogic S912 sticks before. H96 Pro HDMI TV stick specifications: SoC – Amlogic S912 octa-core ARM Cortex A53 processor @ up to 1.5 GHz with ARM Mali-820MP3 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 8 GB eMMC flash, micro SD slot up to 32GB Video & Audio Output – HDMI 2.0a male connector with HDR support Video Codec – 4K H.265 and VP9 @ 60 fps, 4K […]

Review of MeLE PCG03 Apo Fanless 4K Mini PC – Part 2: Windows 10, Benchmarks, and Kodi

MeLE PCG03 Apo is an update to MeLE PCG03 mini PC, and one of the rare Apollo Lake mini PCs to be both fanless, and support HDMI 2.0 output. I’ve already checked out the hardware design in “MeLE PCG03 Apo Fanless Apollo Lake mini PC Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown“, so in the second part of the review I tested Windows 10, focusing on HDMI 2.0 features, audio pass-through in Kodi, and performance and stability tests to see how well it compared to similar actively cooled mini PCs such as Voyo V1 VMac mini. MeLE PCG03 Apo Setup and System Information I connected a USB 3.0 drive to one of the USB 3.0 ports, USB keyboard and mouse, and RF dongle for a wireless gamepad to the other USB 2.0/3.0 ports, as well as USB type C to micro USB adapter itself connected to a micro USB OTG […]

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